The identity of the famous street artist that is Banksy may have just been revealed…
Banksy’s career stretches back to the 1990s, and one of the earliest works to gain widespread attention was ‘The Mild Mild West’ in Bristol, UK.
Among his most iconic pieces is 2002’s ‘Girl with Balloon’, while ‘Flower Thrower’, ‘Choose Your Weapon’, ‘Laugh Now’, and ‘Kissing Coppers’ have also become internationally recognised.
Although much of his work is associated with the UK, Banksy’s art has appeared well beyond Britain too, including in the US, France, Jerusalem, and Ukraine.
For years, many have believed the artist is British, but his true identity has remained unknown — until now, potentially.
After Banksy created artworks in Kyiv, Ukraine in 2022 amid the ongoing war with Russia, Reuters began looking more closely into the elusive artist and now claims it has identified who Banksy is.
Reuters reports that Banksy is Robin Gunningham. One detail cited as part of the investigation involves US police records indicating that someone with that name was arrested in September 2000, accused of defacing a billboard on top of a building at 675 Hudson Street in New York City.
However, the same report suggests Gunningham may no longer be using that name. It claims he may have changed it legally, with the name David Jones appearing as of 2008.
If that change did happen, the choice would make practical sense: David Jones is common in the UK, which would help someone attempting to avoid attention.
“In 2017, for example, there were about 6,000 men named David Jones in the UK, according to data analyzed by GBG, an identity-data intelligence company. David Jones also is the given name of David Bowie, whose Ziggy Stardust alter ego inspired a Banksy portrait of Queen Elizabeth,” Reuters writes.
The investigation also looked at travel activity around the same period Banksy’s works appeared in Ukraine. Reuters says it found that a man named David Jones entered the country on October 28, 2022.
A source speaking to the outlet reportedly said the passport used by this David Jones carried the same birthdate as Gunningham.
Banksy’s former manager, Stephen Lazarides, added to the intrigue in comments to Reuters, saying: “There is no Robin Gunningham. The name you’ve got I killed years ago.”
Banksy’s long-time lawyer, Mark Stephens, responded with a statement saying that Banksy ‘does not accept that many of the details contained within your enquiry are correct’.
While he did not confirm or deny who Banksy is, Stephens also urged Reuters not to publish its findings, warning that doing so would ‘violate the artist’s privacy, interfere with his art and put him in danger’.
Stephens also explained why continuing to use a pseudonym can matter for an artist like Banksy: “It protects freedom of expression by allowing creators to speak truth to power without fear of retaliation, censorship or persecution – particularly when addressing sensitive issues such as politics, religion or social justice.”